Methods of gastrointestinal examination
Disease description:
I've been having severe stomach pain these past few days. Sometimes I feel bloated, and food seems hard to digest. I want to go to the hospital for a checkup to find out what's causing this. I'd like to know what methods are used to examine the gastrointestinal tract?
Doctor's answer (1)
Dr. Shen Yonghua
The main methods for gastrointestinal examination include the following:
1. Endoscopy: including gastroscopy and colonoscopy, which allow direct observation of the gastrointestinal tract for any abnormalities and are the preferred method for gastrointestinal evaluation.
2. Barium meal study: under X-ray imaging, this examines the shape and contours of the esophagus, stomach, duodenum, and other parts to diagnose related diseases.
3. Abdominal color ultrasound: primarily used to examine the liver, gallbladder, appendix, and other organs.
4. Abdominal fluoroscopy: mainly used to detect conditions such as intestinal obstruction and bowel perforation.
5. Barium enema: primarily used to evaluate benign and malignant tumors, ulcers, and other lesions in the colon and rectum.
6. Helicobacter pylori testing: checks for H. pylori infection in the stomach, which can be performed via endoscopy, H. pylori antibody testing, or urea breath test.
